


Loops & Lemons

by ArcticLucie



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Daddy!Kaidan, Family Feels, First Kiss, Fluff, Kid Fic, M/M, Papa!Shepard, Playgrounds, Sheploo - Freeform, Single Parents, Widowers, jealous!Shepard, kids being kids, sleep deprived children
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-19
Updated: 2015-07-28
Packaged: 2018-04-10 03:42:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4375883
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArcticLucie/pseuds/ArcticLucie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>John Shepard and Kaidan Alenko meet in the cereal aisle at the local grocery store. They reach for the same box on the shelf, sparks igniting when fingers brush and cherubs serenade them as their eyes lock...</p><p>Just kidding, they fight over a box of cereal for their temper tantrum throwing 5yo son and 4yo daughter, respectively.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to practice writing children for varies vague and evasive reasons *avoids eye contact* so have a kid fic. This is a two-shot. Part two will hopefully be up some time this week. *fingers crossed* And the rating might get bumped up a little next chapter.
> 
> Shoutout to the lovely [Cereith](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Cereith/pseuds/Cereith) for ~~enabling~~ encouraging me to get this posted. :D
> 
> Prompt: _We both reached for the last box of fruit loops and I don’t care that we’re both adults I will fight you._

John Shepard had already had a long day by the time he pulled the rust bucket that passed for his vehicle into the grocery store parking lot at half past nine. The five year old tyke kicking the back of his seat was not helping in the slightest. Neither did the fact that bedtime had long since come and gone or that said tyke was still whining about the fact that Mr. Snuggles didn't make in the car for the five minute trip to the store.

"I wan' 'ister 'uggles!" Jonah pouted around a thumb in his mouth.

Shepard was more than happy to get out of the car if only for the ten short seconds of relief it afforded him. He opened the backdoor and leaned in to unbuckle his son who gave a few last kicks to the back of the seat for good measure before Shepard was able to lift him out.

"Mr. Snuggles!" Jonah whined again as Shepard took his hand so they could cross the parking lot.

"He had to stay at home and watch the house since Aunt Janie is working late," Shepard tried to reason. He'd have better luck with a brick wall.

"I wanna drive a car," his son said pointing to the grocery cart with the children's seat that looked like the kiddy car he had at home.

"Not tonight. We just came for cereal." _And beer,_ he thought to himself. 

"I wanna drive the car!" Jonah demanded.

The poor kid wasn't usually so grumpy, but he should've been in bed over an hour ago. He was going through a phase where he would only eat Fruit Loops for breakfast and Shepard didn't get Jane's text informing him that they ran out until late. It was better to have him fussing for an hour tonight than all day for his nanny tomorrow. Otherwise, they'd have to give poor Samantha a big fat raise.

"Want to ride on my back?" Shepard offered instead.

"No! Wanna car!" he yelled, stomping his little feet in defiance. But at least he appeared to be off Mr. Snuggles for the moment. Small victories.

Shepard—anticipating he'd go boneless any second and flop on the floor—scooped him up and carried him through the sliding glass doors. "We just came for Loops, then we'll go, okay? You want Loops for breakfast, right?"

Jonah nodded, a frown on his face, as he stuck his thumb back in his mouth. They had broken him of the habit once, but after the boy's other father had died, their grief counselor advised Shepard not to worry about the regression. That was over a year ago, and he wondered if it was time to try again.

By the time they got to the cereal aisle, Jonah had settled down with his head on Shepard's shoulder, the red mop of hair the kid got from Jane tickling his neck. He readjusted Jonah on his hip after he started to slip and began his search for the colorful sugary cereal.

He spotted what looked to be the last box of Fruit Loops and reached for it right as a mocha shaded hand did the same from behind him, both grabbing the box and pulling it off the shelf together. "Excuse me, I was here...," Shepard spun around, sure to keep a tight grip on the box, " _first,_ " he said, trying not to lose his resolve when he looked into the most delicious pair of honey brown eyes he'd ever seen.

"Well, I'm sorry, but you'll just have to pick something else," said the stranger, voice just as delectable as his eyes.

The only reason Shepard was able to keep his grip on the box as the man tried to pull it away was Jonah squeezing his hip with his little legs, essentially grounding him. "Well, I'm sorry, but you'll be the one who needs to pick something else. We came just for this. So if you'll excuse us, we'll be leaving now," Shepard countered, attempting to yank the box away.

"Daddy, I'm hungry," said a small voice from behind the stranger. 

"Just a minute, sweetheart. Daddy's getting your cereal," the man said over his shoulder. Shepard peeked around him to see a girl, maybe a little younger than Jonah, with the same brown eyes sitting in one of the carts with the cars on them that Jonah had wanted. The man turned back around and narrowed his eyes at Shepard.

"My son," Shepard growled, readjusting the child again, "will only eat this for breakfast, so I don't care what I have to do, we are leaving with this cereal," he said in his best authoritarian detective voice.

"My _daughter_ has been begging for this all day, and we aren't leaving without it," he replied, pulling the box back towards him.

"I am a cop and have a set of cuffs in my pocket that I won't hesitate to use on you when I arrest you for child endangerment," Shepard threatened, motioning with his head to where the little girl was starting to climb up on one of the grocery shelves.

"Addy, no!" the stranger yelled, letting go of the box and rushing over to his daughter.

Shepard puffed out his chest in triumph, "You two have a good evening," he said with an oily grin as he walked by, making sure to hold up the box and give it a good shake to drive the point home.

As they walked away, he heard the man give a tired sigh, and suddenly the win felt hollow. "Baby, you'll just have to pick something else out. The mean man took the last of the Fruit Loops," the stranger grumbled. 

Shepard tried to ignore his daughter's cries as him and Jonah made their way down the aisle. When they got to the alcohol, he put Jonah down and handed him the cereal to hold so he could carry a case of beer. The cartoons on the box helped to distract and settle the boy down, which he was thankful for.

As they walked towards the registers to check out, they passed the father and daughter again. The other man rolled his eyes when he saw them walking his way. "Beer and cereal, why am I not surprised," he huffed under his breath, his voice dripping with disapproval.

Despite that underhanded jab, Shepard couldn't help but look back to check him out after they passed. His dark jeans fit him to perfection and Shepard had a strong urge to see what he had hidden under his blue hoodie. _Maybe it was time to start dating again,_ he contemplated as he absentmindedly twisted the ring still on his finger while they waited in line.

They headed back out to the car and strapped in for the short trip home, but when he went to turn the key, the engine wouldn't start. Great. Just what he needed. At this rate they may never get to bed.

"Papa, I'm hungry," Jonah said from the backseat. 

"Car won't start again. I'm gonna have to call Garrus and see if he'll come rescue us, so you'll have to wait a little while, buddy," Shepard lamented.

"We got Loops," the boy said, shaking the box he refused to let go of.

Shepard looked at him through the rearview mirror, his son's green eyes sparkling back at him. "Okay, it's a nice night. We'll sit on the hood and eat Loops till Uncle Garrus can come help," he said as he pushed open his door. 

He got the two of them settled on the hood of their car and was just about to call his partner for backup when he saw the man and his daughter walking out of the store. His hopes were low that the man would show an interest in helping them out after their little tussle, but Shepard wanted another excuse to hear his voice before he disappeared into oblivion.

The man started pushing the cart a little faster as he approached Shepard's car. "Waiting to gloat?" he sulked.

"No, car trouble," Shepard said, sliding off the hood. "I don't suppose you'd—"

"Sorry, I need to get her home and in bed," the man said, but Shepard saw the way his posture relaxed and his speed decreased as they went by. 

There was his window. 

He picked up Jonah and settled him on his hip as he caught up to the two of them. "I'm John, but everyone calls me Shepard. This is my son Jonah. And I think we got off on the wrong foot. How about we give you half our box of Fruit Loops in exchange for a quick jump?" he asked with a small hopeful smile.

"Kaidan and this is Addison," the man replied, stopping the cart in front of a car that didn't look much better off than Shepard's. He turned to regard them, giving Shepard a scrutinizing up and down look before smiling at Jonah who was stuffing another handful of cereal in his mouth.

"We like to share, don't we kiddo?" Shepard asked. "You don't mind sharing with Addison and her daddy, do you?"

Jonah nodded and held out the box so Addison could reach in and grab her a handful. 

"I suppose that's an even trade," Kaidan agreed as he took the bags out of the cart and loaded them in his car before retrieving Addison and buckling her into her carseat. "Do you two want a ride back to your car?"

"Yeah, sure," Shepard chuckled. He put Jonah in the backseat next to Addison and climbed in the front. "I really appreciate it. We've had a long day and it's way past his bedtime."

"I'm not doing it for you...I'm doing it for the Fruit Loops," Kaidan said with a tentative sideways smile. He went to start the car but the engine just sputtered. After trying a few more times, he slumped back against his seat in defeat when it wouldn't turn over, censoring what should've been a swear with a "shoot."

Shepard could only laugh at their compounded misfortune. It started out low but grew, and before he realized it, Kaidan was joining in as they laughed their misery away. "Well, I suppose what he have here is a box of shared Fruit Loops and two lemons."

"I've had worse," Kaidan replied turning to look at him. "I don't suppose you have triple A?"

"No, just a single G," he sighed as he pulled out his phone. He dialed Garrus' number to call for help. "Hey, it's me...I'm out with Jonah and the car won't start again. Could you maybe come rescue us?...yeah, tell me about it...we're at the grocery store on Maple and Fourth...yeah. Thanks a lot, man...We'll be waiting."

Shepard reached in the back seat for a handful of Fruit Loops and shoved half into his mouth. "I hadn't planned on this being dinner, but it's just been one of those days, y'know?" Shepard said before finishing the cereal.

"For us too," Kaidan agreed. "But at least you have someone to call...we just moved here from Vancouver and haven't had time to make very many friends...or any really except for her babysitter," he explained, motioning towards the backseat. "And we kind of just lucked into her."

"Jonah and I would be happy to introduce you around. We could set up some playdates or something. Do you live around here?"

"Yeah, the only dark colored house on Elm," Kaidan chuckled. "Maybe it's a bad omen." 

"Ahh, Anderson's old place. Not to worry, it isn't cursed. We live two blocks down on Pine," Shepard replied.

"You know Anderson?"

"He's my sergeant down at the station."

"Right, you're a cop...with handcuffs," Kaidan muttered.

"Yeah, sorry about all that. You know how it is with kids," Shepard said, bowing his head in shame. He had been a pretty big jerk, he'd admit, but he'd also admit that he had since then come up with a few other reasons for wanting to use the cuffs on Kaidan.

"I'm the new medical examiner," Kaidan said, and Shepard jerked his head around to meet his eyes.

"You're the 'amazing' Alenko I've been hearing so much about the past few weeks?" he asked in mild disbelief as he studied the man beside him. 

"Yeah...I take it you've heard of me?" Kaidan blushed, a subtle tinge coloring his cheeks that was almost undetectable in the low light being cast down from the lamp he'd parked under.

About the hot, new, and very mysterious M-E that strolled into town out of the blue who was rumored to be single and had all the women at the precinct fawning over him? Yeah, he might've heard a thing or two about that.

The kids were giggling in the back seat about how much they loved Toucan Sam but everything started to wash out around the edges of Shepard's senses when Kaidan's eyes began to burn right into him with a blistering intensity. And did the car start? Because he swore the heater switched on.

"Uh, ahem, what does your wife do?" Kaidan asked, pulling his gaze away to refocus it on the peeling leather of his otherwise uninteresting steering wheel.

"I'm a widower."

"I'm sorry, I didn't—"

"It's fine, you didn't know," he said, giving Kaidan a weak smile. "...and it's been about a year since he passed. He was shot in the line of duty, robbery gone awry," Shepard frowned.

This time it was Kaidan's eyes that shot to his. "I'm sorry for your loss...my, uh, my wife died in childbirth," Kaidan said with a sullen look. 

"I'm sorry for yours." 

A squabble in the backseat cut through the somber mood that had set in. 

"Papa!" Jonah whined, "She took my prize!" 

The fathers turned around to face the kids, Kaidan's scent titillating Shepard's nose with the closer contact. He had to get out of the car before he was too far gone. The last thing he needed was to fall for a straight guy, no matter how cute him and his daughter were.

"Addy, that's Jonah's prize. His dad bought it for him. You can have the one out of the Lucky Charms when we get home," Kaidan said. 

"But I wanted this one!" she started to cry, her and Jonah yanking on either side of the prize like Shepard and Kaidan had done to the cereal box. 

"Can I give Jonah your prize, then?" Kaidan asked.

"Nooo!" she screamed. That set off Jonah and they both started kicking at the seats as they turned on the waterworks.

"Addy, stop that!" Kaidan lectured.

"Jonah, stop kicking the seat, please. This isn't our car," Shepard raised his voice. 

Kaidan reached in the back and took the toy from both of them. "Me and John will share them then since you can't," Kaidan chided as he turned back around and knocked his head back against the headrest.

"They're just tired," Shepard said, offering a little support. He was lucky he had two other parental figures at home in Sam and Jane to help him out with Jonah. Three if he counted Garrus since his partner had all but moved in after he and Jane started dating.

"So am I," Kaidan said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "And now I'm getting a migraine," he groaned. 

Shepard got out of the car and opened the back seat. "Alright, everybody out!" he ordered. Both children climbed out at a snail's pace, tears streaking down their cheeks. "Come on," he said, picking them both up and placing them on the hood of the car. "How about you tell Addison which star is your favorite," he suggested to his son.

Jonah lit up at the idea, scanning the skies until he spotted Polaris. He pointed it out to Addison and began to recite everything he'd ever been taught about the North Star. Kaidan seemed just as captivated as his daughter by the lesson the boy was giving and his breadth of knowledge on the subject. 

Shepard took the opportunity to steal a glimpse or two at the other dad, memorizing every detail he could because it'd been a long time since anyone was able to send a spike of heat surging up his spine with so much gusto.

"Did you teach him all that?" Kaidan whispered to him.

"Some of it. He's picked up different things from each of us. Instead of reading him bedtime stories, my...James and I wanted to do something unique, so we taught him astronomy. We both loved that sort of thing so it's a way for all of us to always be connected.

"My sister, Jane, our egg donor, was James' partner on the force. They were close so she's taught Jonah a lot too, for similar reasons. We just love the stars. He's been so excited that the days are getting shorter because he's able to see the stars come out before bed time," Shepard said, a fond smile spreading across his lips as he looked at his son.

"He's a pretty amazing kid," Kaidan smiled.

"She's adorable," he motioned towards Addison. "You're going to have trouble when she gets older."

"Don't I know it...that's why I've decided not to let her," he quipped. "If only it were that easy. She looks just like her mother, has her stubborn tenacity, too," he said with a warm chuckle.

"She has your eyes, though," Shepard added.

"Yeah...yeah, she does," Kaidan conceded, ducking his head bashfully before looking back up at him through dark lashes. They exchanged another one of those searing looks that had Shepard sizzling in all the right places.

But the moment was effectual ruined by a shout from Garrus. "Shepard? Where's the Mako?"

"Uncle Garrus!" Jonah exclaimed, diving off the car in his excitement. Shepard's heart lodged in his throat, but he reached out to catch him right before he could complete his nosedive into concrete and slung the kid onto his hip. Kaidan picked up Addison as they joined the two Shepard's by the pickup.

"End of the aisle, but they need a jump too," Shepard said before introductions. "This is Kaidan and Addison _Alenko._ Alenkos, this is my partner Garrus Vakarian."

"Nice to meet you," Kaidan greeted.

"Wait! _The_ Alenko? The new M-E my girlfriend and every other women, and a few men...," he paused for an exaggerated winked, "at the precinct keep talking about?" Garrus asked. "Damn, I was hoping you weren't as handsome as they all said."

"Language!" Shepard and Jonah admonished.

"Oh sorry, Jonie, I meant darn," Garrus amended, having the decency to look somewhat ashamed.

"That's, uh, yeah, that'd be me," Kaidan blushed again, the color more prominent outside the cover of the car.

"Let's get to it, then. I'm sure these two need to get to bed," Garrus said.

"Yeah, the kids, too," Shepard chuckled. Kaidan must've been extremely tired because he laughed at his bad joke as well.

Kaidan strapped Addison into her booster seat and popped the hood. Garrus attached the cables to the batteries and after another few tries, Kaidan was able to start his car. Shepard saw the look of relief wash over him as he stepped out of the car to thank both of them.

Garrus took Jonah from Shepard and gave him an amused smirk as the two headed to his truck. It was accompanied by the kind of look that only someone who had known him most of his life could read that pretty much said, " _You're so screwed._ " 

"We'll be by the Mako," he tossed back over his shoulder.

Kaidan took on a curious expression as he watched them walk away, "Mako?"

"The kid likes sharks, too. Apparently, the car's the color of a mako, so he named it," Shepard explained.

They shared another soft laugh before Addison whined "Daddy" from the backseat. Kaidan ducked his head inside for a moment and Shepard heard a muted, _"Just a second, sweetheart. We're about to go home."_

When he straightened back up, Shepard continued, "It was nice meeting you...even though the circumstances were less than ideal." 

"Yeah, you too, but I'm sure I'll see you around at work or something," Kaidan replied. 

"With our jobs, that's bound to happen sooner or later." _Please be sooner!_

There was a comfortable silence that rolled in after, but Kaidan thankfully broke it before it could turn awkward. "The kids hit it off. We should set up that play date."

"Yeah...yeah, they'd love that. Do you want to give me your number or...? I could call or text or something," Shepard suggested. _Something? What? Like smoke signals, John? Idiot!_ he berated himself.

"Sure, sounds good," Kaidan smiled. He gave Shepard his number and he shot off a test text just to be sure he got it typed in right. With that settled, they said their goodbyes and John walked back to his car, giving a small wave as the Alenkos drove by.

Garrus already had Jonah in his booster seat, and after a quick jumpstart, they were finally on their way home with less than half a box of Fruit Loops, a case of beer minus the ones he thanked Garrus with, and some new friends. 

But Shepard couldn't help but wonder as they crossed Elm, how long he had to wait before he could _call or text or something_ to set up that play date.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shepard, Kaidan, and the kids have a playdate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, this took a little longer than I thought. It ended up longer than I thought, too. Hope you enjoy, and also I plan to do some drabbles for Kaidan appreciate week on [tumblr](http://archlucie.tumblr.com), so look for those. I'll probably post them here as well. If I have time and the muse is with me, I'd like to do one set for this 'verse and one for canon, but we'll have to see how that goes.
> 
> **Warning for very brief and vague mention of inappropriate contact with a child. Bumping this up to Teen.

Over the next several days, Shepard composed and then deleted at least a hundred different texts to the newest contact in his phone. He knew he was being a little ridiculous, but it had been a long time since he'd been drawn to anyone, let alone a completely out of his league, uninterested, and wholly unobtainable one.

He couldn't help it, Kaidan was just so...hot!

And he was filled with equal parts guilt and giddiness about noticing that fact. James would want him to be happy, that much he was sure of, but it was harder for him to accept that maybe he could be...with someone else.

The only crush he'd had after James passed was on Steve Cortez who worked impound at the station, but he was so torn up with guilt about it that he never made a move. Steve was dating someone else now, which closed the window on that, but he chalked his hesitation up to him not being ready to move on.

Whatever the strange stirring in his stomach was for Kaidan had blindsided him. He wasn't one to believe in love at first sight, so it had to be lust, but it was probably best if they didn't hang out together just to be safe. If Kaidan contacted him to set up a playdate for the kids, he decided that he'd send Sam or Jane along in his place. 

As if on cue, his phone rang, startling him out of his musings. He fished it out of his pocket and read the name: _Alenko._ Fate, thou art a cruel mistress. He swallowed down the lump forming in his throat and swiped 'answer.'

"This is Shepard."

 _"Uh, hey, it's Kaidan Alenko,"_ the smooth silken voice on the other end said.

"Hey, I was just about to text you," Shepard lied.

 _"Great minds,"_ he chuckled. _"I was just calling to see if you and Jonah were free Saturday afternoon. Y'know, for the playdate. If you're not, that's okay. It's just that Addy hasn't stopped talking about Jonah since we met."_

"Yeah, we're free," Shepard couldn't help but blurt out with a smile, glad that Kaidan couldn't see his stupid face. Garrus could, though, the indignant snort he let out causing Shepard to swivel around in his chair. "There's a park on third. It's within walking distance. How about we meet there after naps, say around three?"

 _"We look forward to it,"_ Kaidan replied. _"I should probably get back to work."_

"I should go, too. We'll see you Saturday," Shepard said, berating himself for sounding way too enthusiastic about the whole thing. He ended the call and shoved his phone into his pocket like it had betrayed him. "Not a word!" he warned Garrus as he turned his chair back around.

Unfortunately, Garrus didn't need words to get his point across. His 'you're so screwed' look prominently displayed on his face.

*****

Shepard made the mistake of telling Jonah that him and Addison were having a playdate on Saturday. His son spent the rest of the week talking everyone's ear off about how his new friend liked Toucan Sam and stars. The worst part was, he wouldn't lay down for his nap Saturday after lunch and demanded they go to the park immediately.

Jane was able to get the tantrum stopped with bribes of ice cream, but in the end, he and Shepard ended up traipsing down to the park an hour early. His plan was to make sure the tyke didn't wear himself out before Kaidan and Addison showed up.

It was a crisp early fall day, but the park was a little sparse when they arrived. Shepard thought that it was due to most parents' success in getting their children to take their afternoon naps. He couldn't complain because he knew that when all the moms showed up, he'd lose Kaidan's attention. His only hope was that the Alenko's showed before the after-nap crowd did.

John tried to stop his smile from threatening to out shine the sun when he spotted Kaidan and Addison by the swings. He was mostly able to contain it by the time they made it over to the father-daughter duo, but just barely. 

"Hey, Shepard. You're a little early," Kaidan said, mouth twisting into a tempting and titillating—and perhaps a little teasing—smirk that Shepard absolutely in no way wanted to taste.

"Someone insisted on skipping nap time today," Shepard groused, as he gave Jonah an impossible look that the kid was oblivious to. He was too busy laying prone on the swing as he walked himself backwards. 

"Look, Addy! I'm Superman," Jonah said, holding his arms out in front of him as he picked up his legs and went swooshing forward.

"Daddy, I wanna be Superman too!" Addison shouted, nearly jumping off the swing in her excitement. Thankfully, Kaidan was able to stop her before she launched herself into the air.

"Okay, be Superman," Kaidan chuckled as he walked over to stand by Shepard. "Addison wasn't big on nap time today either. I think she was too excited."

"We tried everything, even ice cream but no dice," Shepard sighed. They watched the kids play on the swings for a few moments before they got bored and opted to run amok in search of more interesting adventures. "At least they're in better moods today...small victories."

"I'll take it," Kaidan smirked. 

"Have you been waiting long?" he asked.

Kaidan shook his head, "We got here a few minutes before you did. Is it always this barren?"

"No, I think it's everyone's nap time. And you could've called," Shepard said as he eyed him.

"Didn't want to chance waking Jonah," Kaidan shrugged back.

"I appreciate that," he replied. 

After a few minutes of idle chatter, they headed towards the bench Kaidan had piled his and Addison's things on. The kids had started on the slide by that point. One slid down, and before they were halfway, the other would come barreling down behind them. Then they'd race back to the ladder, little legs carrying them as fast as they could go to repeat the cycle.

Kaidan had shed his blue hoodie when they sat down and Shepard couldn't help but ogle the perfect form underneath. He had on a tight black t-shirt that almost looked painted on and light-wash jeans with a few holes in the knees that Shepard's fingers were itching to explore.

Shepard had on his favorite hoodie as well but mirrored Kaidan and took it off, hanging it over the back of the bench as he sat down. He'd need to take Jonah's off soon or he'd get too hot. His cheeks were already looking rosy.

"So what made you move out here from the big city?" Shepard asked, lifting a foot to rest the ankle on his knee. He turned his body towards Kaidan and placed his forearm on the back of the bench.

"Needed a change of scenery, I guess. That's the most reasonable explanation." Kaidan shifted on the bench and ducked his head before he continued, "Truth is I was implicated in a murder investigation and needed to get away."

"Tampering with evidence?" Shepard questioned. He couldn't help the stiffening of his body language as he slipped into cop mode.

"No, I actually killed him...I didn't mean to, it was an accident, but...," Kaidan let out a heavy sigh, "He tried to _touch_ Addison and I pushed him...right down a flight of stairs and his neck snapped."

Shepard wasn't sure what to say to that, but if someone laid a hand on Jonah, it sure as the ocean was wet wouldn't be an accident when he killed them. Kaidan looked remorseful and sullen, and Shepard switched right back out of cop mode once his gut assured him it was the truth.

"How are you doing with that?" Shepard asked.

"It'll always be with me, but she keeps me sane," he said, looking towards the seesaw the kids had moved onto. "I'm not sure why I told you, but I'd appreciate it if we could keep this between us," he said, turning back to Shepard with hopeful yet wary eyes.

"Of course...I understand," Shepard assured him.

"Papa, can you push us on the merry-go-round?" Jonah interrupted, huffing out of breath after running up to them.

"Sure, kiddo, but let's take your jacket off first, okay?" 

He helped his son out of his green dinosaur hoodie, then he and Kaidan took turns spinning the kids till they were close to being sick. Shepard tried to concentrate on the children, but it was hard when Kaidan went flying by with every revolution, shirt riding up olive skin, chest heaving, and beads of sweat rolling down his neck.

Not soon enough, the kids ran off to play spaceship while he and Kaidan slinked back to their bench. "So how do you like Citadel?" Shepard asked.

"Not quite used to small town living yet, but we're getting there," Kaidan replied.

"If you need help or if there's anything you or Addy need, don't hesitate to ask," he smiled. Kaidan smiled back, and Shepard found himself trapped in a smoldering gaze. He was starting to think they might not be in his imagination after all.

They were both jolted out of the moment by pained yelps of "Daddy!" Kaidan took off first, running full out towards his daughter's distressing cries. Jonah was yelling "Papa!" as well, and Shepard was steeling himself for the worst. It turned out to be a mildly bruised elbow that was kissed all better and just as quickly forgotten.

By the time he and Kaidan got back to their bench, the park was starting to come alive. Miranda was the first to saddle up to them. She was babysitting her kid sister Oriana who was several years older than Jonah.

"Who's your friend, Shepard?" she purred. Shepard mentally cringed knowing her Aussie accent and perfectly proportioned body had most likely ruined any possible chance he may've had with the other dad. Not that he actually had one.

"Kaidan Alenko, meet Miranda Lawson. She works with me at the station," Shepard said. 

"Nice to meet you," Kaidan greeted, shaking her hand. Miranda's eyes swept over his body in the most salacious of ways and Shepard just wanted to go bury his head in the sandbox the kids were now playing in. 

Samara was next to show up with her three daughters, but she was a lesbian and deemed not to be a threat. Tali and Liara came together with their daughter and son, respectively, but were both married. EDI walked from their house with her son and husband Joker who usually spent most of his time on his tablet gaming. 

But the drama didn't start until Rahna arrived, queen bee of the PTA and whose son, Saren, was the playground bully. "Kaidan? Is that you?" she hollered, drawing everyone's attention to her all the way from the other side of the park.

"Rahna? Wow, it's been a long time," replied a befuddled Kaidan as she ran up to him and threw her recently divorced paws around his neck. Shepard had to look away, taking the opportunity to scan the playground for Jonah and Addison. He was relieved that Saren was on the opposite side. 

"You know each other?" Miranda interrupted. Shepard was unable to decided if the contempt in her voice was for Rahna moving in on her prey or if she just hated the snooty woman. 

"Kaidan was my first love," Rahna answered. "We went to high school together...."

Shepard was distracted—or saved—from Rahna's explanation as to why she still had her hands on Kaidan when Jonah and Addison came running up. Kaidan scooped up his daughter and began to introduce her to Rahna and the rest of the women.

Jonah tugged on Shepard's pant leg and cried out "Papa!" 

Shepard looked down at his pouting son and took a knee. "What's wrong, buddy?"

"Saren's here," he whispered. He went to stick his thumb in his mouth but Shepard caught his arm. 

"Eww, your hand's dirty, baby," he said. Looking around the playground, he saw the older boy push one of Samara's daughters out of the way so he could slide next. Shepard was about to say something, but Samara was already on the warpath as she stormed over to reprimand the bully and check on her daughter.

Saren came running up in tears to his mother who instantly went into mama bear mood. 

"How about I push you on the swings?" Shepard asked, wanting to shield his son from the impending drama. They both needed a distraction from their problems. Although, Jonah's was something he could actually do something about. 

Jonah nodded his head and grinned as he took off for the swings. He climbed up on one with a little boost from Shepard and started to pump his stubby legs. Shepard gave him a few pushes in between quick glances in Kaidan's direction. He tried not to but it was near impossible. And if anyone asked, he was keeping an eye on the fighting mothers. He was a peace officer after all. 

A few minutes later, he felt another tug on his pant leg. "Mr. Shepard, can you push me on the swings too?" Addison asked, and how could he say 'no' to those puppy dog eyes of hers? Maybe it was best that Kaidan wasn't interested. He'd be in big trouble. 

"Sure, sweetheart," he smiled. He helped her onto the swing next to Jonah and pushed one with each hand. "And you can call me John."

Jonah was regaling Addy with his plan to be Hawkeye for Halloween which she countered with Black Widow when Shepard felt eyes on him. He looked over to the group to find Kaidan's blistering gaze focused on him and it knocked the breath right out of him. He had to swallow hard to keep from choking on his own spit.

He was sure he was reading into things because he most certainly had a crush on the other dad, but straight guys didn't look at other guys the way Kaidan was looking at him. He had to shake if off, though, he was just seeing things, he was sure. Kaidan was just thankful he was looking after his kid while he reconnected with lost love.

That's what he told himself anyway.

That's what he was telling himself when Kaidan made his way over to them. 

"Hey, Addy, are you ready to go?" Kaidan asked.

"Nooo," she whined.

"We've been here for two hours and it's getting close to dinner time," Kaidan said.

"I don't wanna go home, I wanna stay with Jonie!" she yelled, kicking slender legs when he stopped the swing.

"Now this is the Addison our new friends know," he sighed, flashing an apologetic look Shepard's way.

"We should get going too, Jonah," Shepard added, stopping his son's swing with similar results. 

They picked up their squirming, tantrum throwing bundles and set out for their bench. Kaidan was able to quiet Addison by the time they reached the swarm of women camped around it, which had grown since Shepard and Jonah left for the swings. 

"You're leaving?" Miranda asked with a frown as all the women awed.

"Yeah, we've been here a while," Kaidan replied.

"We'll have to get together so Addison and Oriana can have a playdate," she smiled with her perfect, white teeth.

"With Saren too," Rahna batted her lashes.

"Um, I think Oriana and Saren are both a little too old for Addy," Kaidan said as he helped his daughter with her hoodie. Shepard hid his smile as he struggled to help Jonah with his, but the kid was still having a fit.

"We're gonna head out, but Jonah had a great time. We'll have to do it again sometime," Shepard said in the middle of Kaidan exchanging numbers with a few of the women.

"Oh," Kaidan said, stopping to look over at him, and Shepard wasn't about to try and decode whatever it was that crisscrossed his face because it couldn't've been sadness. The man was just overwhelmed by all the requests for playdates. "Yeah, we'll see you guys around. Bye Jonah."

But Jonah was too upset to reply. Shepard said goodbye to Addison then picked up Jonah and slung him over his shoulder. He gave Kaidan a weak smile that was returned and started for home feeling bad for leaving the poor—hot—single father alone with the vultures. 

Just as they were exiting the play area, there was another tug on Shepard's pant leg. "Jonie?" came Addison's tiny voice from behind them. Shepard stopped and bent down, repositioning his son so he was forced to stand on the ground. He was sniffling, but the crying had stopped.

"What is it, sweetie?" Shepard asked for him. 

"We forgot your present at home," Addison explained. "Daddy said you can come over and get it. And you can see my room and all my toys," she smiled.

"Did he now?" Shepard said, glancing over towards where the other father was collecting their things from the bench.

Kaidan was looking back at him, and Shepard just about melted from the fire in his eyes. That was the moment he realized that what Garrus had been telling him all week was true, that he was in fact screwed. And it wasn't fair because single dads were not supposed to be that hot!

"Can you come to my house?"

He looked back at the little girl, dark hair starting to fall out of her ponytail, and smiled, "We'd love to go to your house, wouldn't we kiddo?"

"Yeah!" Jonah squealed, his mood doing a complete one-eighty.

A few minutes later and Kaidan was able to break free of the pack. He ambled over to the three of them and scooped Addison up. She giggled as he maneuvered her onto his back as they all headed down the sidewalk. 

"You didn't have any plans, did you?" Kaidan asked. "It's just that we got you something for being mostly nice to us," he chuckled, "and I forgot to bring it."

"Oh y'know, just the usual: chicken nuggets and our millionth viewing of Wall-E," Shepard laughed back.

"Sounds like a good time. We might do the same and you're welcome to join us," Kaidan said.

"We'd love too," he replied with a sideways grin. He wasn't going to say 'no' to more time with them.

Ten minutes later, they arrived at the Alenko's house. As soon as Kaidan unlocked the door, Addison went rushing in, Jonah hot on her tail. Shepard and Kaidan followed behind and met them in the kitchen where Jonah was hugging a brand new box of Fruit Loops to his chest. 

He held it up with the widest grin on his round face. "Papa, look! They got me Loops!" he exclaimed.

"I think you two are officially his favorite people," Shepard laughed, smiling at the kids as they yammered on about the cartoons on the box.

"We thought it was fair after your friend helped us out," Kaidan said, nudging Shepard with his elbow, and when did he get so close?

"Can I have some, Papa?" Jonah asked.

"How about I make us some dinner while you two play in Addy's room?" Kaidan suggested instead.

"Do you like Legos, Jonie?" Addy asked, her eyes lighting up.

"Yeah!" he replied, just as excited. The two took off again to Addison's room, and Shepard was just quick enough to swipe the box from his son before it disappeared to 'accidentally' get itself opened and half-eaten before dinner.

The quartet settled on the couch with the kids in the middle after dinosaur chicken nuggets to watched Wall-E. Shepard spent a good portion of it sneaking looks at Kaidan. Even in the muted glow from the television, the man was breathtaking. Kaidan caught him staring a few times, but he smiled and played it off before quickly looking away.

The kids went to play in Addison's room when the movie was over leaving Shepard and Kaidan on the couch. They talked about the children for a little while until Kaidan changed the subject abruptly.

"Uh, look Shepard," he said, scratching the back of his neck, a nervous tic Shepard noticed, "I have a confession to make...I didn't forget the Fruit Loops, I was just using it as an excuse to invite you over."

Shepard raised a brow as he let that sink in. Did Kaidan need help unpacking or with a leaky faucet or something? 

"It's just that...I mean, I know it hasn't been that long for you and I don't want to pressure you in anyway, especially if you aren't ready, and the kids get along and we get along and I don't want to ruin the first friendship that we've both had in this town, but I just...god, this is going to sound crazy...I feel drawn to you, if that makes any sense at all," he said, looking away when he finished.

"What are you saying, Kaidan?" Shepard asked. He had an idea where this was going, but he needed clarification.

Kaidan looked back at him and took a deep breath before he spoke, "I'm saying, I lured you here under false pretenses because I like you and wanted to spend a little more time with you and Jonah," he replied. "That's probably cowardly—"

"Wait, was this supposed to be a date?"

"It's a playdate for the kids, sure, but I...yes," Kaidan sighed. "I'm sorry, and I understand if I freaked you out or made you feel uncomfortable, but I wasn't sure how people took that sort of thing around here. I mean, I know you're gay, but..."

"Are you?"

"I'm bisexual," Kaidan confessed, those brown puppy dog eyes staring back at him.

"So you're saying you aren't straight and I actually have a shot with you?" Shepard smiled.

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying," he nodded, eyes a little more hopeful as he smiled back.

"I'm drawn to you too, but I never would've...I didn't think you were interested."

"I'm very interested, but I do understand if you want to take things slow," Kaidan said.

"That would probably be a good idea, for the kids as well," Shepard admitted. He didn't want to rush things, and he had a feeling Kaidan was worth the wait. "But I have been known to kiss on the first date," he felt compelled to add.

They both peered over the back of the couch and heard the children's laughter carrying down the hall. Shepard hadn't realized how close they had gotten towards each other since the kids left, but he didn't have to lean in far before Kaidan's soft lips were pressed against his.

They were sweet and warm, chaste, until their lips began to glide over one another's with more fervor, heads tilting to perfect angles, mouths opening the slightest bit so they could move a little further into each other.

Kaidan lips felt so good on his, and he wanted to drink him up, wanted to run his fingers through the jet black depths of his hair to pull him in, to deepen the kiss, but the pitter-patter of little feet echoing down the hall sent them rushing apart like the backwash of a wave escaping into the sea.

"Papa, she won't let me play with her Captain America?" Jonah pouted.

"I think it's time we get home anyway, kiddo. Maybe next time you can bring yours and they can be twins like me and Auntie Janie," Shepard said, ruffling his son's red mop of hair.

Shepard stood and gathered their things, exchanging heated looks with Kaidan as he tried to wrangle his sleep-deprived child. "This is why we don't skip naps," Shepard chuckled as Kaidan helped him with Jonah's hoodie, the boy thrashing around as he struggled against them. 

"It's probably the red hair," Kaidan teased.

"Yeah, he got that from Jane and I make sure to remind her of that everyday."

Kaidan and Addison walked them to the front door to say goodbye. Jonah calmed down when she gave him the Fruit Loops box she retrieved from the kitchen. "So, we had a good time," Shepard smiled.

"We'll have to do it again real soon," Kaidan replied.

"Well, if you're up for it, we have breakfast at the little bakery on Main on Sunday's. They serve killer pancakes. If you'd care to join us, we'll be there around eleven tomorrow," Shepard said. He hoped it wasn't too soon to be making another...

"It's a date!"


End file.
